The present invention relates to an image generating device using an optical disk, a magnetic disk, a semiconductor memory or like storage medium storing a program data, an image generating method, a readable storage medium storing an image generating program and a video game system.
Quite a few video game systems have been proposed. These video systems include systems comprised of a special apparatus for home use and a television monitor and systems comprised of a special apparatus for commercial use, a personal computer or a workstation, a display and a sound output device. Any one of these systems is provided with a controller operated by a game player, a storage medium storing a game program data, a CPU for executing controls to generate sounds and images based on the game program data, an image processor for generating images, an audio processor for generating sounds, a CRT monitor for displaying images, and a loudspeaker for making the sounds audible. CD-ROMs, semiconductor memories, cassettes containing built-in semiconductor memories, etc. are frequently used as the storage medium.
Various kinds of video games of this type are known. Among these known games, competition video games in which many player characters are displayed to play a game on a monitor screen, e.g. a soccer game are known. The soccer game is played by giving instructions of specific motions such as dribble, pass and shoot to a player character of an own team through a controller, and can be said to be an interesting video game having high gaming nature and competition nature.
In such a soccer game, a night game can be expressed in a realistic manner by generating shadow images belonging to player characters and displaying them on the field.
In competition games such as soccer games, many characters including player characters and a referee character need to simultaneously appear on the screen and to be relatively quickly motioned. Accordingly, it has been difficult to generate the character images and shadow images thereof in real time by performing a light source calculation from illumination lights set in specified positions because calculation processing is excessively loaded.
In view of the above problem residing in the prior art, an object of the present invention is to provide image generating device and method which can generate shadow images of specified density for individual characters who appear on a screen by simple calculation, a readable storage medium storing an image generation program and a video game system.
In order to achieve the objects according to the invention, an image generating device comprises: a shadow image generation control means for generating the shadow image belonging to the character located on the simulated field set in the virtual 3D space and extending at least in one direction; a density setting means for setting a density of the shadow image based on a position of the character on the simulated field; a display means for displaying the shadow image; and a display control means for displaying the generated shadow image at the set density on the display means.